Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what consideration they have given to implementing the EU Waste Electrical Equipment Directive (2012/19/EU) in relation to computer software.

No consideration has been given to either computer software or internet search engines because they do not fall within the definition of electrical and electronic equipment specified in the WEEE Directive. Software is normally either downloaded to equipment or purchased on CDs. It is the equipment that is used to run the software that would fall in scope since that equipment is dependent on electric currents or electromagnetic fields in order to work properly. An internet search engine is a service, not a piece of equipment, and so is also outside the scope of the Directive.